Writer E. Jean Carroll Says Donald Trump Raped Her In A Dressing Room At Bergdorf Goodman

The latest sexual assault accusation against President Donald Trump comes from advice columnist E. Jean Carroll, who detailed the alleged rape in an excerpt from her upcoming book, which The Cut published on Friday — making Carroll the 20th woman to accuse the president of sexual misconduct.

The 75-year-old writer claims Trump raped her in a dressing room at Bergdorf Goodman 23 years ago, when she was 52 and he was 50.

Carroll recounted bumping into a younger Trump at the department store and agreeing to help him choose a present for a woman, when he allegedly led her to an unmonitored dressing room. “The moment the dressing-room door is closed, he lunges at me, pushes me against the wall, hitting my head quite badly, and puts his mouth against my lips,” she wrote. “I am so shocked I shove him back and start laughing again.” The struggle continues as Trump pins her against the wall and “jams his hand under my coat dress and pulls down my tights.”

The truly horrendous part of the story comes next: “He opens the overcoat, unzips his pants, and, forcing his fingers around my private area, thrusts his penis halfway — or completely, I’m not certain — inside me.”

In the excerpt, Carroll named 15 other women who have made “credible” accusations of sexual assault against the president. She described him as a famous “real-estate tycoon” — she doesn’t name him in the story, although it is obvious Carroll is referring to Trump.

Carroll has written Elle’s advice column “Ask E. Jean” for over 25 years, and began writing What Do We Need Men For? A Modest Proposal, July 2, when she realised her advice-seekers all had one problem in common — men. The start of the #MeToo movement inspired her to begin keeping a list called “The Most Hideous Men of My Life,” she said, which reflected on her numerous invasive, harmful experiences with predatory men throughout her life. The list also includes powerful media men Les Moonves and Roger Ailes.

“The whole episode lasts no more than three minutes. I do not believe he ejaculates,” Carroll wrote of her experience. She ended the story by saying, “But I have never had sex with anybody ever again.”